Welcome to DMCTalk.org: an open forum dedicated to the discussion and debate about our beloved sports car the DeLorean, its maker, and anything interesting in-between. Registration is free, and by doing so you get to post and participate in the discussion and view any attachments. Since this is an open forum, not all views expressed by its participants are shared by the owners and moderators of the forum. Enjoy the forum everyone! If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. Click here to register. AFTER REGISTERING YOUR NEW ACCOUNT, PLEASE EMAIL "newmember@dmctalk.org" TO HAVE YOUR ACCOUNT ACTIVATED. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

My DeLorean won't start after sitting for 9 months

Hi - Any suggestions to narrow down my search would be greatly appreciated...

When last driven 9 or so months ago, the car was working fine.

I tried to start it the other week and it won't fire. Engine cranks normally and there is a slight smell of petrol / gas at the exhaust after cranking on / off for a minute. At no stage did it 'fire'...

If what Dennis mentioned above checks out, I can think of 2 things fuel related. First, what is the level of gas in the tank and the condition of it? I found that fuel evaporates fairly quickly in these cars so for example, if the tank was at 1/4 tank or less, you might have lost a fair amount over the 9 months. What's left can turn gummy. Because of that, and especially while I was restoring it, I always try to keep my tank as full of non-ethanol fuel as possible and start/run it at least monthly. More often is better.

Secondly, you might have fuel gummed up somewhere in the system as well or instead. Of course, I'd do the normal fuel and spark test first before dismantling anything in that system. There is a "plug swap" and a "mason jar" test that can be done. It could certainly be electrical (and I'm assuming a well charged battery after storage), but after sitting, my guess is something fuel related.

Every car is different of course, but for example, I think there was a recent non start condition after several months of storage. The fuel smell wound up being the car was flooding. It was a stuck plunger in the fuel distributor.

Finally spent some time working on the car today...
- First confirmed that we have a spark;
- Then removed an injector and no fuel was present during cranking;
- Removed fuel line to fuel distributor and no fuel there either;
- Then checked that fuel pump had power - which it does;
- Removed fuel pump and bench tested - it works...

So I am assuming that the fuel pressure accumulator is not working / blocked...

The accumulator could be blocked. But if it has failed, the problem would be a loss of rest pressure, which wouldn't keep it from starting while cold. So, I'd leave the accumulator alone for now and reinstall the pump to see if fuel is getting to the filter next. (Once you get the fuel sorted out, if it don't start, check for fuel fouled plugs.)

Finally spent some time working on the car today...
- First confirmed that we have a spark;
- Then removed an injector and no fuel was present during cranking;
- Removed fuel line to fuel distributor and no fuel there either;
- Then checked that fuel pump had power - which it does;
- Removed fuel pump and bench tested - it works...

So I am assuming that the fuel pressure accumulator is not working / blocked...

What do other people think?

Thanks,

Derek

Hi Derek,

As Ron mentioned, it is probably not the fuel accumulator. Perhaps something else further up in the supply line. You can disconnect the main supply line to the distributor (again?) and put the end of it securely into an empty gas can. Then jump the RPM relay using the thread below to confirm that there is no fuel delivery. When jumped, the fuel pump runs constantly.

Finally spent some time working on the car today...
- First confirmed that we have a spark;
- Then removed an injector and no fuel was present during cranking;
- Removed fuel line to fuel distributor and no fuel there either;
- Then checked that fuel pump had power - which it does;
- Removed fuel pump and bench tested - it works...

So I am assuming that the fuel pressure accumulator is not working / blocked...